Head mounted display device

Abstract

Provided is a head mounted display (HMD) device that lets a user organize added information and thereby makes it possible to improve the ease with which the information can be perceived. A head mounted display device enables a user to visually recognize a virtual image overlaid on a scene. A control unit virtually sets a plurality of display zones, having different depth-direction positions, in front of the user; identifies a display zone being gazed at by the user, on the basis of gaze position information from a gaze position detection unit; drives a focus position adjusting unit so as to align the depth position of the identified display zone with the focus position of a virtual image of the displayed image; acquires, from a cloud server via a communication unit, image information indicating information associated with the identified display zone; and causes a display to display the display image corresponding to the acquired image information.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A head mounted display device that allows a user to visually recognize a virtual image overlaid on a scene, comprising:
 a display for emitting display light indicating a display image; 
 a central processing unit (CPU); 
 a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the CPU, cause the CPU to function as:
 a gaze position detection unit for detecting a gaze position of a user; 
 a control unit configured to cause the display to display the display image corresponding to image information acquired from an external server; and 
 an imaging position adjustment unit configured to adjust an imaging position of a virtual image of the display image visually recognized by a user by the display light, 
 wherein the control unit:
 virtually sets a plurality of display zones with different depth positions in front of the user; 
 identifies, from the plurality of display zones, a display zone being gazed by the user based on the gaze position; 
 drives the imaging position adjustment unit to align the imaging position of the virtual image of the display image with a depth position of the identified display zone; and 
 acquires image information associated with the identified display zone from the external server, and 
 causes the display to display the display image corresponding to the acquired image information, 
 
 wherein the plurality of display zones includes a first display zone, a second display, and a third display zone, 
 wherein the second display zone is located farther away from the user than the first display zone, 
 wherein the third display zone is located closer to the user than the first display zone, and 
 wherein the external server stores 1) first image information relating to the user and/or a mobile body moving with the user in association with the first display zone, 2) second image information to be overlaid on the scene in association with the second display zone, and 3) third image information relating to a warning state in association the third display zone. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The head mounted display device according to  claim 1 , wherein
 the control unit determines occurrence of the warning state, and 
 when the warning state is determined to have been occurred, the control unit:
 acquires the third image information from the external server; 
 drives the imaging position adjustment unit to align an imaging position of a virtual image of a display image corresponding to the third image information with a depth position of the third display zone regardless of the gaze position of the user; and 
 causes the display to display the display image corresponding to the third image information. 
 
 
     
     
       3. The head mounted display device according to  claim 2 , wherein
 when causing the display to display the display image corresponding to the third image information along with at least one of 1) a display image corresponding to the first image information and 2) a display image corresponding to the second image information, the display image corresponding to the third image information is more emphasized than the at least one of 1) the display image corresponding to the first image information and 2) the display image corresponding to the second image information. 
 
     
     
       4. The head mounted display device according to  claim 2 , wherein
 when causing the display to display the display image corresponding to the third image information along with at least one of 1) a display image corresponding to the first image information and 2) a display image corresponding to the second image information, visibility of the at least one of 1) the display image corresponding to the first image information and 2) the display image corresponding to the second image information is lower than the display image corresponding to the third image information. 
 
     
     
       5. The head mounted display device according to  claim 1 , wherein when the display image corresponding to the acquired image information includes 1) a first virtual image that is located within a vicinity of the gaze position of the user and 2) a second virtual image that is located outside the vicinity of the gaze position of the user, positions of the first and second virtual images being aligned with one depth position of the identified display zone, the control unit emphasizes the first virtual image more than the second virtual image.